Saskatchewan Immigrant Nominee Program (SINP)

Introduction

The Saskatchewan Immigrant Nominee Program (SINP) is an alternative to the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) for obtaining initial work permits in Saskatchewan at the same time as making an initial application for permanent residence1. The permanent nature of the application means that all of Citizenship and Immigration Canada requirements must be met. Although employer required documentation is simple, the employees application must include detailed family information and are often well over 125 pages.

SINP offers several categories, each with its own specific eligibility criteria. It is important to note that for every category where a job offer is required, the employer must be registered and approved by SINP before making job offers and hiring foreign workers.

SINP is a web based system and it is necessary to set up both employer and applicant accounts with SINP and to ensure any actions taken in the respective accounts have been properly submitted.

SINP will communicate with the employer and applicant via email so its important to respond to all requests within the timelines given by SINP and to ensure SINP emails do not go to the spam/trash folder.

SINP Average Processing Times2:

The average processing times are influenced by the number of applications SINP receives for a particular category and is not up to date but currently quotes are 9.9 months for International Skilled Workers. SINP does provide information about processing times on its website but it isn’t always kept up to date so its best to contact SINP direct3 .

SINP Application Fee’s:

SINP does not charge application fee’s which means there should be no financial barriers to accessing an appropriate program.

SINP Categories:

International Skilled Worker Category4

Employment offer category – skilled workers with an offer of employment from an approved Saskatchewan employer are eligible to apply for nomination by SINP

Occupations in demand category – skilled workers who are in high demand are eligible to apply for nomination by SINP without an offer of employment from an approved Saskatchewan employer. (Note: the intake threshold for 2015 has been reached and SINP is not accepting any further applications until further notice)

INP express entry category – skilled workers that have been accepted into the federal express entry pool are eligible to apply for nomination by SINP (Note: This category is not currently open. SINP will announce its opening on the SINP webpage during 2015)

Saskatchewan Experience Category5

Existing work permit category – skilled workers who have been working in Saskatchewan for at least six months with a valid work permit are eligible to apply for nomination by SINP

Health profession category – internationally-trained health professionals, who have been working in Saskatchewan for at least six months with a valid work permit are eligible to apply for nomination by SINP. The category is divided into three streams:

Physicians

Nurses

Other Health Professions

Hospitality sector project category – foreign workers who are currently working
in Saskatchewan with a valid work permit in one of the following occupations can apply for nomination by SINP:

Food/Beverage Server

Food Counter Attendant/Kitchen Helper

Housekeeping/Cleaning Staff

Long haul truck driver project category – foreign workers that are currently working for Saskatchewan trucking firms with a valid work permit can apply for nomination by SINP.

Student category – students who have graduated from a recognized, post-secondary educational institution in Canada can apply for nomination by SINP.